You can be forgiven for wondering what enormous telephoto lens David Rothenberg had to use to get those eye-popping, up-close shots he likes to take of jetliners as they come in for a landing at La Guardia Airport.

But sadly, the residents of East Elmhurst, Queens, whose neighborhood is under the flight path, know all too well that Mr. Rothenberg has no need for any special lenses. If the jets in his photos seem to be filling the sky, it’s because they basically are.

The roar of the jet engines is also overwhelming, and even after all this time photographing the planes, Mr. Rothenberg is sometimes taken aback. “It can still be a little alarming,” he says.

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CreditDavid Rothenberg

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CreditDavid Rothenberg

Once, he said, seconds after a plane flew by, a gust of wind blew in behind, and in one great burst a tree shed its leaves.

The air traffic in and out of La Guardia has long been a source of frustration to residents of the communities around it. When the wind blows in from the north, people living near the airport know the planes will soon follow: Pilots fly into the wind to slow down as they land on Runway 4.

There’s nothing for people to do but hunker down. Of course, these are ideal conditions for Mr. Rothenberg, who lives in the neighboring community of Jackson Heights. “I know it’s time to go out and take pictures when I hear the planes flying overhead,” he said.

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CreditDavid Rothenberg

Mr. Rothenberg’s images show planes seemingly grazing roofs or on the verge of being tangled in overhead wires. The aircraft are so close that when he does use longer lenses, he captures intimate portraits of passengers taking in the scene below them.

The only thing the photos can’t reproduce is the rush of wind and the onslaught of noise. “They’re very still and quiet,” Mr. Rothenberg says. The residents of East Elmhurst wish they could say the same.